English Club Part II

So, it was Friday and it was party time! The theme- cultures, so we had a Mexican themed party, with a Kyrgyz and American twist to it. After our discussion on the topic we played a fun word recognition game. Then we were ready to eat- tacos! I was asked to go first so I could demonstrate how to make one. We had soft shells, so I emphasized the importance of the fold! Everybody loved them! After everyone had eaten more than enough, it was time for game #2- the sit and pop a balloon relay race! This was really hilarious to watch, the first guy jumped up and sat down on the chair and balloon and broke the chair! They really enjoyed it. One older lady said it was quite a shock to her butt. :) After the balloons, it was time for the finale of the games- the piñata! I made the piñata and there is only one thing I would do differently and that would be to have stronger string! We had tied it to a broom which I held while standing on a chair. After the first two people, the string had broke and so I then held the string and prayed that no one hit me (we were using my wiffleball bat). But then the string broke again and this time it was too short to hold so we placed it on the floor and the people had to hit it there. It was a lot of fun! It is neat to see people doing things for the first time and experiencing the fun. The next week was our last week. It was a good week. On Wednesday we talked about holidays- because it was the 4th of July and a holiday for me. I got to learn about their holidays, which are many! They have about 3 Independence Days, and almost everybody’s favorite holiday is New Years Day, (not to be confused with Old New Years Day). This sparked the idea for our last Friday party- a Christmas in July party. Christmas in July is a common thing in the US, though I really never understood why we needed Christmas in July, but it worked for us! On Friday, our last day, we had a great time. First we talked about what they think of when they think of Christmas, and what they do. Then we were able to tell them about the origins and reason for the holiday! It was good. Afterwards we ate a lot of food, I mean a lot of food! Then had a “white elephant” gift exchange which was really funny! Yeah, I ended up with the toilet paper. :) Then we ate some more- candy and cake! By that time it was late but no one wanted to leave because it was sad that it was the last day, and because everyone was too stuffed to move! But we will begin again in September and until then we invited them out to a weekly English ‘Word study’. Hopefully we will see some of the same people coming out to this! I am sad it is over, but I am glad to have made these friendships and can now build upon them!